REAL PEOPLE, REAL ISSUES

47 posts categorized "LAW AND JUSTICE"

June 30, 2012

TODAY'S HIGHLIGHTS Strong thunderstorms roll through D.C., bringing destructive winds and outages An extensive line of fast moving, violent thunderstorms rolled through the Washington, D.C. metro region late Friday. NOAA’s Storm Prediction Center has issued a severe thunderstorm watch for the D.C. are and a large reason to the south and west through 1 a.m. As the line moved through, damaging wind gusts of nearly 80 mph were reported. (By Jason Samenow and Theodore Kim)

States consider health-care optionsHow the health-care law affirmed by the Supreme Court will affect you depends on where you live. Here’s a look at the situation in Maryland, Virginia and the District. (By Karen Tumulty and Laura Vozzella)

LOCALTwo killed as powerful storm leaves 1.5 million in D.C. region without power Woman was killed after a tree fell on her house and a man died when a tree collapsed into his car in Springfield. More than 1 million homes and businesses across Maryland and Virginia lost power, with temperatures on Saturday again expected to top 100 degrees. ( by Clarence Williams, Martin Weil and Ashley Halsey III , The Washington Post)

African American churches fight obesity African American congregations in the D.C. area and across the country have decided to give health and wellness the same priority as the word of God. ( by Hamil R. Harris , The Washington Post)

POLITICSStates consider health-care options How the health-care law affirmed by the Supreme Court will affect you depends on where you live. Here’s a look at the situation in Maryland, Virginia and the District. ( by Karen Tumulty and Laura Vozzella , The Washington Post)

STYLEEclectic songs from rising stars Four rising young singers from the Wolf Trap Opera Company presented an intimate, eclectic and individual program of music chosen to accompany paintings from the Phillips Collection. ( by Stephen Brookes , The Washington Post)

‘New Light’ new twist on repertory This year’s New Lights concert, on Thursday at the Clarice Smith Center’s Gildenhorn Hall, began with clapping, and ended with applause. ( by Anne Midgette , The Washington Post)

Torn up over TomKat? You’re not alone. The Washington Post style staffers share your lingering obsession over the now-defunct marriage of Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes. Why? Because we have been captive to this sad circus for so wearyingly and unbelievably long. Because everyone will say they do not care about this, yet everyone will know and talk about this. And because it pains us that culture is like this, but we must observe it anyway, because, God help us, we’re only human. ( by Monica Hesse , The Washington Post)

SPORTSConger makes backstroke final Good Counsel’s Jack Conger, the 2011 and 2012 All-Met Boys’ Swimmer of the Year, advances to the finals of the men’s 200-meter backstroke at the U.S. Olympic swimming trials. (, The Washington Post)

The ‘Beast’ comes out to play in Atlanta Michael Morse continues his recent tear at the plate, going 4 for 4 while clubbing the decisive home run in the eighth inning as Washington holds on to edge the Braves. ( by James Wagner , The Washington Post)

Seeking the psychological edge Ryan Lochte and Michael Phelps continue their duel in Omaha to set the stage for a pivotal showdown Saturday in the 200 medley final. ( by Amy Shipley , The Washington Post)

WORLDU.S. urges China to avoid censorship Bloomberg Web site was blocked after it published an investigative story on wealth amassed by relatives of expected new leader. ( by William Wan and Keith Richburg , The Washington Post)

Morsi defiant on eve of taking office First big public address by Egypt’s new president since his election appeared aimed at ruling generals. ( by Ernesto Londoño and Haitham Mohamed , The Washington Post)

Holder won’t be prosecuted The Justice Department confirms that it will not prosecute Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. for contempt of Congress. ( by Sari Horwitz , The Washington Post)

Iran feels pinch of new sanctions New E.U. and U.S. sanctions are hurting Iran, but experts question whether the end game will work. ( by Jason Rezaian and Joby Warrick , The Washington Post)

June 29, 2011

TODAY'S HIGHLIGHTS Kabul hotel attacked by suicide bombersA squad of bombers and gunmen attacked a landmark hotel in the Afghan capital late Tuesday, exploding a vehicle at its gate and then entering the building. (By Pamela Constable)

D.C. seeks foothold in online gamblingD.C. officials are scrambling to launch an online casino in the city, which is the first jurisdiction in the United States to sanction Internet gambling. (By Michael Laris)

Matching Supreme Court justices The Supreme Court term that ended Monday appeared to make clear that Bush and Obama got what they hoped for when they nominated the justices who will shape the court’s future. ( by Robert Barnes , The Washington Post)

June 20, 2011

TODAY'S HIGHLIGHTS McIlroy captures history at CongressionalRory McIlroy posts the lowest mark in tournament history, shooting a final-round 69 for a total of 16-under 268, as he runs away with the 111th U.S. Open. (By Barry Svrluga)

CEO Pay: What the area’s executives makeHefty stock awards and bonuses drove total compensation up over 20 percent for Washington’s highest-paid chief executives last year, reflecting a nationwide trend among the largest public companies. (By Danielle Douglas)

STYLEAsk Amy: Words of love, uttered and ... forgotten? During a weekend outing, her boyfriend told her he loved her, would marry her “in a week” and wanted her to have his baby. The next day, he couldn’t remember what he said. Yes, there was drinking involved. (, Tribune Media Service)

Hints From Heloise: Special guest request Heloise asks: Is it fair to ask for unusual, specialty or hard-to-find food items when you are a guest in someone’s home? Readers, what do you have to say? (, King)

Calm by the green, crazed by the pitch At the U.S. Open and the Gold Cup, vastly dissimilar cultures were on display — entirely different, yet very much the same. ( by Rick Maese , The Washington Post)

FTC vs. National Gallery Republican lawmaker’s push to have the National Gallery take over the historic FTC building has sparked a turf battle in Washington. ( by Ned Martel , The Washington Post)

Sunday's Sports In Brief BETHESDA, Md. — On another brilliant day of golf, Rory McIlroy ran away with the U.S. Open title, winning by eight shots and breaking the tournament scoring record by a whopping four strokes. ( Associated Press Associated Press , AP)

WORLDReports: Japan's prime minister under pressure to resign next month TOKYO — Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan, criticized for his handling of the tsunami disaster and the country’s sluggish economy, is under pressure to resign next month if budget bills are passed by parliament, reports said Monday. ( Associated Press Associated Press , AP)

June 17, 2011

OAKLAND -- The man who gunned down journalist Chauncey Bailey and a second man in 2007 knows forgiveness is too much to ask, but he wants his victims' families to know he is sorry for the pain he caused. "I don't expect them to forgive me," Devaughndre Broussard said Thursday. "But I hope they hear me. "It was morally wrong," Broussard, 23, said in the interview at North County Jail in Oakland, where he has been held in isolation for nearly four years after his arrest for shooting Bailey, editor of the Oakland Post, on Aug. 2, 2007, and Odell Roberson, a 31-year-old homeless man, on July 8, 2007. When he killed his victims, Broussard said, he didn't think of them as people and "didn't contemplate the pain and grief" their deaths would create for survivors. Broussard confessed to killing both men, and said it was on the order of his then-religious mentor, Your Black Muslim Bakery leader Yusuf Bey IV. Based largely on Broussard's testimony, Bey IV and another bakery member, Antoine Mackey, were convicted June 9 of multiple first-degree murder charges. Speaking through a glass partition in a small visiting room, Broussard said he was not surprised that a jury convicted Bey IV of ordering the deaths of Bailey, Roberson and the July 12, 2007, death of Michael Wills. Mackey was convicted of killing Wills, 36. "I took it in stride," Broussard said. "I heard it on the news." Broussard is scheduled to be sentenced Aug. 12 to 25 years in state prison after pleading guilty in 2009 to two counts of voluntary manslaughter. The terms were part of his plea bargain to testify against Bey IV and Mackey, who each face life sentences without parole. Broussard said he will likely express his remorse publicly when he is sentenced. His attorney, LeRue Grim said Thursday, "he will make a statement." Broussard was dressed in a red jail jumpsuit, his hands and feet shackled to a waist chain. A small pencil was tucked above his right ear. He seemed far more relaxed and spoke far more easily than he did during his six days of trial testimony, when he often stuttered and paused. Deputy District Attorney Melissa Krum described him to jurors as a sociopath and a demon, saying authorities cut a deal with him only to get Bey IV -- who she called 'the devil" -- as the one who ordered the killings. Thursday, Broussard said he believes he was largely brainwashed. He said Bey IV taught a false a version of Islam at the bakery, one that dates to the early 1930s. The belief claims whites and Jews are devils created by an evil scientist named Yakub through grafting experiments, and that a giant mother plane orbits the earth always preparing to launch scores of bombers that will destroy the planet in apocalyptic hellfire. "I took what (Bey IV) said to be Islam. It wasn't," Broussard said. "Now I have time to read the Holy Quran beginning to end and come up with my own conclusions." He insisted that his "mind state" at the time of the killings was influenced by Bey IV, who promised to provide him with a false identity with a high credit score in exchange for committing the murders. But Broussard said he does not regret his decision to join the bakery in 2006 following a nearly yearlong jail term in San Francisco on assault charges. He quit the bakery in early 2007 only to return when he couldn't find other employment because he lacked a high school diploma and had a felony record. "To say I regretted going back would be pointless," he said. "It happened. I have to learn from my mistakes. "We made the wrong conclusions," he added, speaking of himself and his childhood friend, Richard Lewis, who also joined the bakery. Lewis is now serving a life term in Pelican Bay State Prison after being convicted in a May 2007 kidnapping and torture case involving two women. Bey IV, who is accused of planning the attack, still awaits trial in that case. If there had been better programs in place when he got out of jail to help him acquire job skills, Broussard said he probably wouldn't have agreed to became a "soldier" in Bey IV's organization. "When you don't have options you do desperate acts." Broussard said he had no regrets about becoming a prosecution witness after Bey IV failed to provide him with a lawyer or other help after pressuring him to tell police investigators he acted alone when he killed Bailey. "I would have been giving the rest of my life (to a prison term) for those who would not give their lives for me," Broussard said. "There is a price for loyalty they wasn't willing to pay. The friendship I had for them they didn't have for me." Broussard said he also wanted people to know he didn't think Roberson's killing was funny -- even though he burst into laughter while describing it during trial testimony. Instead, he said, he was laughing at what he took as the absurdity of the question. Krum, he said, had asked him what happened after he shot Roberson multiple times at close range with an AK-47 assault rifle. "I wasn't laughing in the sense the murder was funny," he said. "He fell. What do you think he did?" Broussard also laughed notably a second time on the stand, as he was describing a yellow Cadillac driven to the scene of a December 2007 shooting, where a car belonging to a man with whom Bey IV had a disagreement was riddled with bullets. "I visualized the car and thought it was funny," he said. The car, he added, was too conspicuous to use to commit a crime, like a "beacon in the night."

White House report on Libya does little to soothe anger among lawmakers on Capitol Hill WASHINGTON — The White House is vigorously defending President Barack Obama’s right to keep the U.S. military engaged in Libya without seeking congressional approval, a move that appears to have done little to soothe anger among Republican lawmakers and anti-war Democrats over the president’s consultations with Congress during the nearly three month-long campaign. ( Associated Press Associated Press , AP)

Miss Manners: Who wins in ‘culture’ clash? Dear Miss Manners: When cultural differences result in different expectations of the hostess and guest obligations, to whose culture should we defer; the hostess’s or the guest’s? (, United Media)

June 15, 2011

TODAY'S HIGHLIGHTSA tough mission in AfghanistanA low-key Marine, Gen. John R. Allen, is set to take over the war at high-stakes moment.(By Craig Whitlock)

Nuclear waste dump is mired in inertiaYucca Mountain is a case study in government dysfunction and bureaucratic inertia. The project dates back three decades. It has not solved the problem of nuclear waste.(By Joel Achenbach and Brian Vastag)

Bachmann basks in newfound momentumRep. Michele Bachmann enjoyed a day of fundraising, media exposure and glowing analysis of her newfound momentum on Tuesday, following a strong presidential debate performance.(By Amy Gardner and Sandhya Somashekhar)

States seeking to save on MedicaidRepublican governors step up their resistance to rules requiring states to maintain current levels of health-care coverage for the poor and disabled under Medicaid.(By Michael A. Fletcher)

Graduating from elementary school?Dozens of elementary students in the D.C. area are celebrating what some critics call graduation inflation, the growth of ceremonies to mark the end of elementary school. (By Steve Hendrix)

Detainee who provided key information about bin Laden courier rejoins al-QaidaWASHINGTON — The terrorist described as the linchpin in the hunt for Osama bin Laden has rejoined al-Qaida after the Bush administration released him from a secret CIA secret prison under pressure from Pakistan, according to former and current U.S. intelligence officials. ( Associated Press Associated Press , AP)

Detainee who provided key information about bin Laden courier rejoins al-QaidaWASHINGTON — The terrorist described as the linchpin in the hunt for Osama bin Laden has rejoined al-Qaida after the Bush administration released him from a secret CIA secret prison under pressure from Pakistan, according to former and current U.S. intelligence officials. ( Associated Press Associated Press , AP)

Ask Amy: Military couple failing basic trainingA military couple who live in separate states, decided to set up joint checking and savings accounts to strengthen their bond. Alas, one side didn’t practice complete transparency. (, Tribune Media Service)

Tuesday's Sports In BriefNEW YORK — An end to the NFL lockout might not be imminent, but it does appears much closer than at any point in the last three months. ( Associated Press Associated Press , AP)

Attack on Afghan governor’s office kills 8MAIDAN SHAR, Afghanistan — A suicide bomber killed eight people and wounded four in a strike Wednesday on the governor’s office in a northeastern province, while a mortar targeted a building where NATO and Afghan officials were attending the inauguration of the country’s largest police training center in central Afghanistan. ( Associated Press Associated Press , AP)

UK government to back proposals to separate banksLONDON — The British government intends to force banks to insulate their retail operations from their more volatile investment banking, a Treasury source confirmed Wednesday. ( Associated Press Associated Press , AP)

Romney will skip Iowa straw poll in AugustFormer Massachusetts governor, widely regarded as the front-runner in the GOP presidential race, has decided not to participate in this year’s Iowa straw poll nor any other early tests in advance of the 2012 primaries and caucuses, his campaign announced Thursday night. (By Philip Rucker and Chris Cillizza)

Senate legislation may slow, but quorums continueThe old ritual of calling senators to the Senate floor to bide time, “quorum calls,” has increased dramatically. Meanwhile, the amount of legislative business the body conducts is down. (By David A. Fahrenthold)

An embassy-in-exileAmerican diplomats who evacuated from Libya are still working — in a makeshift mission at the State Department. (By Mary Beth Sheridan)

Redistricting stalemate in Virginia The GOP-controlled Virginia House of Delegates and the Democratic-led state Senate approved conflicting plans for redistricting. ( by Rosalind S. Helderman , The Washington Post)

Ask Amy: Learning the truth about the past I come from a very large family — eight sisters and three brothers. By the time I was 8, my father and mother had both died. I went to live with my oldest sister (also the oldest child in the family) and her husband and his son. (, Tribune Media Service)

Hints From Heloise: Sanitizing a spa tub I am requesting a suggestion for deep-cleaning or sanitizing my spa tub. I’ve just cleaned it and scrubbed the jets with an old toothbrush. I want to be certain that all bacteria is gone so I can feel good about getting in my spa tub. (, King)

SPORTSThursday's Sports In Brief OSLO, Norway — Usain Bolt ran the fastest time in the world this season as he eased to victory in the 200 meters at a Diamond League meet, while Caster Semenya finished third behind Halima Hachlaf in the 800 meters. ( Associated Press Associated Press , AP)

Gates says NATO has a ‘dim’ future BRUSSELS — America’s military alliance with Europe — the cornerstone of U.S. security policy for six decades — faces a “dim, if not dismal” future, U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Friday in a blunt valedictory address. ( Associated Press Associated Press , AP)

Karzai arrives in Pakistan for reconciliation talks Afghan President Hamid Karzai arrived in Islamabad Friday for talks with top Pakistani leaders amid cautious hopes that the two nations can forge a coordinated strategy for reconciling with insurgents. ( by Griff Witte and Pamela Constable , The Washington Post)

Bey IV, 25, faces a mandatory sentence of life in prison without parole when he is sentenced July 8.

Bailey, 57, was the first journalist killed over a domestic story in the United States since 1976, when Don Bolles of the Arizona Republic died in a car bombing

The jury of seven men and five women began deliberations in the Bailey case May 23 after nine weeks of testimony from more than 50 witnesses.

Bailey, editor of the Oakland Post, was gunned down Aug. 2, 2007, on his way to work in downtown Oakland. The man who confessed to killing Bailey, bakery member Devaughndre Broussard, told officials that Bey IV ordered the death to stop the journalist from publishing an article about the bakery's financial troubles. Broussard accepted a plea deal in exchange for his testimony and is expected to be sentenced to 25 years in prison.

After Bailey's death, a coalition of local media, including the Bay Area News Group, joined in the Chauncey Bailey Project, an investigative group that looked into the case and the Oakland Police Department's handling of it.

"From the very first meeting that led to the creation of the Chauncey Bailey Project, there were two goals," said Robert Rosenthal, executive editor of the Chauncey Bailey Project and head of the Berkeley-based Center for Investigative

Reporting. "One was to continue Chauncey's work and to make sure that when a journalist is murdered because of their work justice is served. There is no doubt that the work of the project helped keep law enforcement focused on this case, and revealed facts and evidence that may have never been disclosed. Today's verdict is a reminder that journalists do make a difference and that their work is crucial to our democracy."

After a decade-long stint at the Detroit News, Bailey joined the Oakland Tribune in 1993 and was fired from the paper in 2005 for ethical violations. He had been appointed editor of the Oakland Post, a free circulation weekly paper covering the city's African-American community only weeks before his death.

He had written but not published a story about the bakery's 2006 bankruptcy filing that a judge had recently converted from reorganization to liquidation. Post publisher Paul Cobb had rejected the story, claiming it didn't contain enough attribution.

At the time, police suspected bakery members were involved in two other killings as well as the kidnapping of two women and the torture of one of them. Police had planned to raid the bakery compound the day before Bailey's murder, but delayed to accommodate the vacation scheduled of two senior SWAT commanders.

When they carried out the operation the day after Bailey's death, Broussard threw the shotgun out his bedroom window and was arrested. He repeatedly told police he didn't kill Bailey, but Bey IV, in separate interviews with detectives, claimed Broussard had told him he committed the murder.

Detectives eventually brought Bey IV into their interview with Broussard and after he continued to claim he killed no one, left them alone together for about six minutes with recording the conversations.

Broussard told jurors during his trial testimony that during the time alone Bey IV convinced him to give a flawed confession. "He said I was being tested by God," Broussard said that he was also promised a Bey-family lawyer, money and a light jail sentence in exchange for protecting Bey IV from charges he ordered the killing.

Police said within days that they didn't believe Broussard acted alone, but did not investigate other suspects vigorously. Bey IV and Mackey were not charged in Bailey's killing until April 2009, after Broussard agreed to cooperate with prosecutors.

When he finally testified against his former friends, Broussard, 23, laughed as he described how he shot Roberson and acted in what defense lawyers described as a bizarre manner, sometimes taking a minute or more to answer a question.

During breaks in his testimony he often rocked back and forth in the witness chair and appeared to be muttering to himself with his eyes closed. Deputy District Attorney Melissa Krum said Broussard was far from the perfect witness, telling jurors he was a sociopath, but, in effect, was chosen by Bey IV, not her.

"Sometimes you have to make a deal with a demon to get the devil," she said in her closing argument, pointing at Bey IV as she said the last word. SOURCE:OAKLAND TRIBUNE

June 06, 2011

TODAY'S HIGHLIGHTS Yemen’s Saleh flies to Saudi ArabiaPresident Ali Abdullah Saleh’s departure raised the prospect that a key U.S. ally in the fight against al-Qaeda had lost his grip on a nation tumbling into chaos. (By Ernesto Londono and Sudarsan Raghavan)

Redesigning Metro’s mapLance Wyman, the creator of the transit system’s colorful map, has the challenge of redesigning the map more than three decades later. (By Dana Hedgpeth)

Wireless Net access, GPS on collision courseTwo of 21st-century America’s favorite gadgets — the smartphone and the GPS device — are on a collision course, according to a report delivered Friday to the FAA. (By Ashley Halsey III)

Egyptians say economy is top concernA U.S. government-funded poll finds most Egyptians say they backed the revolution because of their economic difficulties, not a lack of democracy. (By Mary Beth Sheridan)

Cut the costs, cache the cash A new cost-cutting effort by Montgomery County is encouraging employees to come up with ways to save taxpayers money. ( by Michael Laris , The Washington Post)

Sulaimon Brown shows money orders The former D.C. mayoral candidate says they were given to him by Howard Brooks as part of payments he says he received to disparage Mayor Fenty during the campaign. ( by Nikita Stewart , The Washington Post)

Waiting for the promise of high-speed rail Critics say Virginia Gov. Robert F. McDonnell missed an opportunity when his administration decided not to apply for federal funds. ( by Anita Kumar , The Washington Post)

STYLEMiss Manners: Overwhelmed by photo requests I seem to be the only person in the last several years who has taken a camera to parties, family gatherings, school plays, etc.Afterward and sometimes during the event, I am asked to take pictures and “send” them to several people. (, United Media)

Ask Amy: This mom has had it with gift tradition Dear Amy:How can I (or should I?) tactfully end obligatory gift-giving among relatives who barely know one another? I suggested a couple of times that we end this tradition, but it was poorly received each time. (, Tribune Media Service)

LIVE DISCUSSIONSRecovering from the 2011 Post Hunt The Washington Post Hunt is a game of brainteasers, humor, puzzles and family fun dreamed up by Dave Barry, Gene Weingarten and Tom Shroder. The 2011 Post Hunt is set for June 5 in downtown Washington, D.C. (, vForum)

The 2011 Post Hunt: Are you ready? The Washington Post Hunt is a game of brainteasers, humor, puzzles and family fun dreamed up by Dave Barry, Gene Weingarten and Tom Shroder. The 2011 Post Hunt is set for June 5 in downtown Washington, D.C. (, vForum)

May 31, 2011

OAKLAND -- A year after facing a lifetime in prison for killing an unarmed BART passenger, former transit police Officer Johannes Mehserle will be released from jail in a couple of weeks.

With credits for time served and the leniency of a Los Angeles County judge, Mehserle will be set free after serving 11 months of a two-year sentence issued after the 29-year-old was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter in the killing of Hayward resident Oscar Grant III.

Mehserle's release from Los Angeles County Men's Central Jail, most likely in the middle of June, should not come as a surprise because the date was determined when Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Robert Perry declined last year to issue a harsher penalty.

For Grant's family, the release is a bitter reminder of the tragedy that occurred in the early hours of Jan. 1, 2009, and how, in their minds, the criminal justice system failed. "We really don't feel like there has been accountability for his actions," said Cephus Johnson, Grant's uncle and a family spokesman. "We were totally let down by the judicial system."

For Mehserle, being freed from jail offers a chance to begin anew but not in the profession he had chosen when he became a BART police officer more than three years ago. And while Mehserle's release closes a chapter in the highly publicized saga, the story of Grant's death and its implications will continue for years as both a federal civil suit and an

Mehserle's conviction remain active in the courts.

"Things are still unsettled," said Michael Rains, Mehserle's defense attorney. "(Mehserle) would just as soon fade into oblivion, find a job, support himself and his family and do so without fanfare."

Mehserle was charged with murder for killing Grant on the Fruitvale BART station platform in Oakland. The killing made national headlines and sparked several destructive demonstrations after videos captured by BART passengers recorded the shooting.

The videos showed an unarmed Grant being shot in the back as he lay prone on the station platform with another BART police officer holding him down.

Mehserle refused to speak to investigators immediately after the killing and eventually was charged with murder by now-retired Alameda County District Attorney Tom Orloff.

Publicity surrounding the shooting and the frequent protests in downtown Oakland forced a relocation of the trial to Los Angeles, where Mehserle testified in his own defense, saying the shooting was an accident caused when he mistook his gun for his Taser.

A jury appeared to believe Mehserle, finding him guilty of involuntary manslaughter.

That verdict and a decision made by Perry during a sentencing hearing to throw out a complicated gun enhancement charge reduced Mehserle's possible term in jail from 25 years to life to two years.

It also angered Grant's family members, who continue to believe Mehserle purposely killed Grant and that he has not paid enough for the crime.

"The sentencing was a slap in the face," Johnson said. "We are hurt and angry."

May 27, 2011

TODAY'S HIGHLIGHTS CIA to search bin Laden compoundThe arrangement would allow the CIA for the first time to enter a complex that it had previously scrutinized only from a distance. (By Greg Miller and Karen DeYoung)

Serbia arrests Ratko Mladic on war crimes chargesRatko Mladic, the former Bosnian Serb general charged with orchestrating the largest mass killing of civilians in Europe since World War II, was arrested Thursday in Serbia, ending a nearly 16-year manhunt. (By Colum Lynch)

Online letters claim innocence in Md. slayingAn interest in yoga brought a businessman-poet and AU professor together. Now he’s accused in her death. In online letters, the man — believed to be in Mexico — says he’s not guilty. (By Dan Morse)

Mitt Romney launching campaign on June 2 Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney will formally announce his presidential campaign next Thursday, June 2, in New Hampshire. (By Chris Cillizza and Rachel Weiner)

POLITICSObama signs Patriot Act extension; will continue anti-terror surveillance powers WASHINGTON — Congress on Thursday passed a four-year extension of post-Sept. 11 powers to search records and conduct roving wiretaps in pursuit of terrorists. Votes taken in rapid succession in the Senate and House came after lawmakers rejected attempts to temper the law enforcement powers to ensure that individual liberties are not abused. ( Associated Press Associated Press , AP)

Congress approves extension of Patriot Act provisions Racing against the clock, Congress passed an extension to key provisions of the USA Patriot Act that allow investigators to keep using aggressive surveillance tactics. ( by Paul Kane and Felicia Sonmez , The Washington Post)

Gingrich casts self as ‘comeback kid’ The roughly 600 people who came to see Newt Gingrich during his two-day campaign swing through New Hampshire were largely uninterested in his purchases at Tiffany & Co. ( by Nia-Malika Henderson and Dan Eggen , The Washington Post)

Paul and the Other Paul The most memorable moment of Paul Simon’s concert comes with the star attraction happily observing. ( by David Malitz , The Washington Post)

SPORTSTillman’s tactics help Terps The Final Four-bound Maryland men’s lacrosse team has responded to first-year Coach John Tillman’s team-building techniques. ( by Christian Swezey , The Washington Post)

Lisa de Moraes on the TV Column Post TV columnist Lisa de Moraes is back and ready to chat about all the drama, comedy and heartbreak of the world of television -- both onscreen and behind-the-scenes! (, vForum)

Competing plans on job growth President Obama and Congressional Republicans unveil competing plans to reduce the cost of doing business for U.S. companies. ( by Zachary A. Goldfarb , The Washington Post)

Ex-Nasdaq exec pleads guilty to fraud Former executive traded on confidential information about companies listed on the Nasdaq, reaping more than $755,000 from 2006 to 2009. ( by David S. Hilzenrath , The Washington Post)

March 29, 2011

To certain members of Your Black Muslim Bakery, murder was a laughing matter, a confessed bakery hit man said Monday.

Devaughndre Broussard chuckled in the trial of bakery leader Yusuf Bey IV and another member of the group as he recalled how one victim tried to run away before Broussard emptied an assault rifle at him.

Bey and the other member, Antoine Mackey, made fun of how another victim's leg flew up in the air when he was riddled with rounds from a rifle, Broussard said.

In between the chilling details of those two slayings, Broussard testified for the first time about the shooting death of Chauncey Bailey, whom Bey allegedly ordered killed to prevent the Oakland journalist from writing about the black empowerment group's financial collapse.

Bey told Broussard to learn where Bailey lived and "find out his routine," Broussard told the jury in Alameda County Superior Court in Oakland. "He wanted us to take him out before he wrote that article."

It was Broussard's second day on the witness stand in the murder trial. He has confessed to being the gunman who killed Bailey with three shotgun blasts on Aug. 2, 2007, as the Oakland Post editor was walking to work at 14th and Alice streets in downtown Oakland.

Bey ordered up another slaying less than a month before Bailey's death, telling Broussard to kill Odell Roberson, 31, the uncle of the man who shot and killed Bey's brother, Broussard said.

He said Bey had initially wanted him to kill the father of Alfonza Phillips, who shot and killed Antar Bey during a botched carjacking in 2005.

Bey "wanted him whacked because his son killed his brother," Broussard said, adding that Bey believed in "an eye for an eye."

But after Broussard reported that he and Mackey couldn't find the elder Phillips, Bey told him to kill Roberson, a "dope fiend" and transient who lived on the streets of Oakland near the now-defunct bakery, Broussard testified.

"Take him out when you get the chance, because it seems like we can't get his pops," Broussard said Bey told him.

Broussard, 23, burst into laughter on the stand when he recounted how Roberson had tried to run away when he leveled an SKS assault rifle at him. He said he had fired the rifle "until the clip was empty," about eight to 10 rounds.

Broussard pleaded guilty to two counts of voluntary manslaughter in exchange for a 25-year sentence and a promise to testify against Bey and Mackey, both 25, in their murder trial.

Mackey is accused of killing a third victim, 36-year-old Michael Wills, in July 2007. Bey, who is accused of ordering the killing, boasted about "getting" a white "devil," Broussard said.

Mackey and Bey made fun of how Wills' leg flew up after he was shot, with both men shouting, "It's good!" while raising their arms straight up, simulating a field goal, Broussard testified.

Japan Plant Repair DelayedWorkers are trying to repair a ventilation system in the plant and channel enough power to a cable connected to reactor No. 2.Read original story in New York Times | Monday, March 21, 2011

Wyclef Jean Shot in HaitiThe pop star was grazed by a bullet as he campaigned for fellow musician Michel Martelly in the Haitian presidential election.Read original story in CNN | Monday, March 21, 2011

AT&T Buys T-Mobile for $39 BillionThe deal will make AT&T the biggest wireless carrier in the United States. It also means trouble for competitors and workers as AT&T consolidates the two companies. Read original story in Wall Street Journal | Monday, March 21, 2011

Knut Is DeadThe star polar bear of the Berlin Zoo died suddenly on Saturday, aged 4, as hundreds of tourists looked on in horror.Read original story in AP | Monday, March 21, 2011

The Congressman from Koch?Kansas Congressman Mike Pompeo received more money from Koch Industries than any other politician in 2010. Liberal groups say he's now pushing Koch-friend legislation in the House.Read original story in Washington Post | Monday, March 21, 2011

When Maggie Met JimmyA new trove of letters and documents suggest that hard-nosed British leader Margaret Thatcher was surprisingly chummy with President Jimmy Carter.Read original story in The Associated Press | Saturday, March 19, 2011

February 07, 2011

Egypt Makes New Concessions to ProtestersAfter meeting with a number of representatives of opposition groups, including the Muslim Brotherhood, the country's vice president vowed to allow a free press, lift the emergency laws and set up a committee to study reforms.Read original story in The Associated Press | Sunday, Feb. 6, 2011

AOL Buys Huffington PostThe $315 million deal will put Huffington Post founder Ariana Huffington at the head of editorial content for both companies.Read original story in Los Angeles Times | Monday, Feb. 7, 2011

Obama and O'Reilly Face OffPolitico reports the two "seemed to enjoy each other's company" during a pre-Super Bowl interview.Read original story in Politico | Monday, Feb. 7, 2011

U.S. Special Envoy Embarrasses AdministrationThe White House's envoy to Europe shocked Western leaders in Munich when he seemed to speak fondly of Egypt's president, underscoring the disagreements that exist in Washington over how to proceed.Read original story in The Guardian | Sunday, Feb. 6, 2011

Americans in Iran Deny Spying Charges in CourtTwo men held in Iran for the last 18 months pleaded not guilty, insisting they were hiking in the mountains of northern Iraq when they inadvertently crossed an unmarked border.Read original story in Reuters | Sunday, Feb. 6, 2011

User-Generated Ads Score at Super Bowl A Doritos dog ad and a Pepsi MAX commercial made on the cheap by ordinary people won competitions for the coveted Super Bowl spots. Meanwhile, Groupon bombed with its off-color ad about Tibet.Read original story in USA Today | Monday, Feb. 7, 2011

December 06, 2010

Sound the alarm - Oakland's Police Department is shrinking so fast that it doesn't have enough officers to cover some patrols and many of its investigative units have been stripped to the bone.

Everyone knows about the 80 officers the city laid off in July to save money. But since then, 21 more have retired, 12 have decamped for other police departments, five have simply quit and one has been fired - dropping the total number of officers to 670.

Meanwhile, 30 more officers are undergoing background checks by other departments seeking to hire them. And another 40 will be eligible to retire by year's end.

Even that doesn't tell the whole story.

Another 77 cops - or more than 10 percent of the entire force - are on the shelf because of injuries. That's about double the usual rate. Twenty will be going back to work in the next two weeks, but only for "light duty."

And thanks to a provision in a parcel tax that city voters passed in 2004, 63 cops have to be assigned as community problem-solving officers who ferret out trouble spots and crime trends in designated districts. That means they can't be assigned to investigations or to work in other neighborhoods.

Put it all together, and you have investigative units such as the burglary and robbery details being raided to fill patrol beats.

There are now just five cops investigating everything from auto thefts to burglaries to identity theft.

But even so, street coverage is becoming a challenge. On an average day, six of the city's 33 patrol car beats go uncovered for lack of officers.

Chief Anthony Batts - who estimated the city needs at least 925 cops to get the job done - is trying to make up for the loss by partnering up with federal, state and county law enforcement units.

October 26, 2010

(10-26) 16:46 PDT OAKLAND -- To prosecutors, the trial of former BART police Officer Johannes Mehserle proved that he "abandoned all judgment and training and became part of a sweeping swell of officer aggression" when he killed unarmed train rider Oscar Grant.

To defense attorneys, jurors learned that Mehserle accidentally shot Grant while intending to subdue the 22-year-old with a Taser during a difficult arrest, making "a tragic and irreversible error while trying in good faith to do his job."

The interpretations were laid out Tuesday in legal briefs filed with Judge Robert Perry, who is scheduled to sentence Mehserle on Nov. 5 in Los Angeles County Superior Court.

Prosecutors are making a case for prison time for Mehserle, 28, who was convicted of involuntary manslaughter in July and has been jailed in Los Angeles ever since. The defense seeks his release on probation.

The court filings underlined a continuing disagreement at the heart of the case. Defense attorney Michael Rains said it was clear that jurors believed the New Year's Day 2009 shooting at the Fruitvale Station in Oakland was an accident when they rejected murder and voluntary manslaughter charges - both of which require prosecutors to prove an intent to kill.

However, Deputy District Attorney David Stein pointed to the jury's separate finding that Mehserle had intentionally used a gun. "While (the) defendant attempted to convince the jury that the shooting was an accident," Stein wrote, "the jury found otherwise."

Perry cannot call jurors back to court to question them on how they arrived at their verdict. None of the jurors has spoken publicly.

Mehserle faces five to 14 years in prison for involuntary manslaughter and the use of the gun. However, legal experts said, state law allows a judge to grant probation for involuntary manslaughter under unusual circumstances. And Rains argues that the gun-use enhancement should not apply to police officers, who carry weapons as part of their job.

In his filing, Stein said Mehserle deserved prison time because he had acted recklessly, taking advantage of a position of trust while killing a vulnerable victim. The use of the Taser defense, Stein wrote, undermined police-community relations.

Rains countered that Mehserle - a young man with an unblemished record - had decided to devote his life to protecting the public, only to lose his career and become the object of public scorn "in half a second, with no ill intention, and at least in part as the result of inadequate training and experience" at BART.

August 12, 2010

Florida Immigration Bill Aims to Outdo ArizonaUnder the proposed legislation, immigrations would face twenty days in jail for not carrying their documents, and could receive harsher sentences for committing the same crimes as legal residents.Read original story in Miami Herald | Thursday, Aug. 12, 2010

Feds Nabs 'Granddad Bandit' in Louisiana"We really didn't know him. (His wife) would always say he was going out of town, and now that I think about it, everywhere he went, banks were robbed," a neighbor told the press.Read original story in Associated Press | Thursday, Aug. 12, 2010

September 2012

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